Clutch in Wins over Buffalo, Leveille Named VEDA Player of the Week

By Jane Norton and Alexis Pearson, 10/29/18, 11:30AM EDT

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Spectacular back-to-back performances in goal, especially when it counted most while protecting one-goal leads in the third period, are the reason why Amanda Leveille of the Minnesota Whitecaps is the VEDA NWHL Player of the Week.

Thanks in large part to the clutch netminding of Leveille, the Whitecaps defeated her former team, the Buffalo Beauts, 3-2 on Saturday and 2-1 on Sunday at TRIA Rink. The Whitecaps are now 6-0 in their first season in the NWHL.

“It was a fantastic weekend for our team,” said Leveille, when informed she was selected as the VEDA NWHL Player of the Week. “If you look at these two wins, everyone on our team contributed. Getting named Player of the Week is a real honor. The hockey was really great all weekend, and it was fun to be part of it.”

The former University of Minnesota Gopher, an Isobel Cup champion with the Beauts in 2017 and the NWHL Goaltender of the Year in 2017-18, signed with the Whitecaps in June. Six games into the season, Leveille is 6-0 with 1.50 goals-against average and a .947 save percentage.

Her save percentage for her collegiate career at Minnesota? .947.

Leveille was also an extraordinary 98-9-5 with 32 shutouts and 1.18 GAA as a Gopher.

Her sorcery has continued in the pros – first in Buffalo and now with Minnesota. Since she joined the NWHL, Leveille has been one of the league’s most accessible and generous players and biggest advocates. Like her outstanding play, her support of the NWHL, Whitecaps and the mission to advance professional women’s hockey has been as strong as ever.

“This has been an unbelievable time for women’s hockey and the NWHL, and it’s exciting to continue my pro career in Minnesota – a community that means so much to me,” said Leveille. “Having a team in the State of Hockey is fantastic for everyone – the fans, the players, the game and our league. To be a part of this new chapter in woman’s hockey is a privilege for me.”

Leveille and the Whitecaps’ next games are on Dec. 1 and 2 against the Boston Pride at TRIA Rink. Fans are encouraged to order their tickets now at NWHL.zone/tickets, because Minnesota’s first four home games all sold out and these will too.

Stay tuned each Monday for the announcement of the VEDA NWHL Player of the Week.